Vinyl on Vinyl Capstone paper

The Capstone Project 

 A Multimedia Multimedia Production Production Paper Presented Presented to the Department of Multimedia Arts and Sciences of the Mapua Institute of Technology Intramuros, Manila

Website, Marketing and AVP Collaterals for Vinyl on Vinyl

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Capstone Project

By:  Abdon, Alvin Alvin Dela Cruz, Jerolyn Palogan, Charmailyn

June 18, 2012  ALL RIGHTS RIGHTS RESERVED RESERVED

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Urban art refers to a wide variety of art forms that are grouped together because they are created in city areas, depict city life, or make a statement about urban issues. Urban art began as graffiti, which was the spray-painting of the sides of buildings, bridges, and other structures and was considered by many to be vandalism (www.wisegeek.com). It started from humble yet illegal beginnings, but now it has grown into an art form which made use of a wide range of media to create even large-scale murals and installation art. Ever since hip-hop and punk music rose from the ashes of urban blight to become two of the most potential youth culture movements of the twentieth century, the world's streets have taken center stage as vibrant sites of creativity (Abrams, 2007). In this new generation, new global street culture has emerged, bringing all of the world's diverse subcultures and modes of urban expression together: graffiti, skateboards and BMX, DJ's, offbeat fashion, gang life, music, as well as design, photography, and other more traditional visual art. Today, underground and urban art is taking its spotlight in different parts of the globe. However, here in the Philippines, people usually considered art as a sort of piece which relates itself to the famous art movements in our history depicting the works of Da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael and our own Luna, Amorsolo and Fransisco. Filipinos tend to acknowledge art as a conventional way of portraying the real world. It seems that we are bound to our ideal thinking of what an art is based on the history books. Most of us are confined on our little knowledge of what an art is, who are the artists, and

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Urban art refers to a wide variety of art forms that are grouped together because they are created in city areas, depict city life, or make a statement about urban issues. Urban art began as graffiti, which was the spray-painting of the sides of buildings, bridges, and other structures and was considered by many to be vandalism (www.wisegeek.com). It started from humble yet illegal beginnings, but now it has grown into an art form which made use of a wide range of media to create even large-scale murals and installation art. Ever since hip-hop and punk music rose from the ashes of urban blight to become two of the most potential youth culture movements of the twentieth century, the world's streets have taken center stage as vibrant sites of creativity (Abrams, 2007). In this new generation, new global street culture has emerged, bringing all of the world's diverse subcultures and modes of urban expression together: graffiti, skateboards and BMX, DJ's, offbeat fashion, gang life, music, as well as design, photography, and other more traditional visual art. Today, underground and urban art is taking its spotlight in different parts of the globe. However, here in the Philippines, people usually considered art as a sort of piece which relates itself to the famous art movements in our history depicting the works of Da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael and our own Luna, Amorsolo and Fransisco. Filipinos tend to acknowledge art as a conventional way of portraying the real world. It seems that we are bound to our ideal thinking of what an art is based on the history books. Most of us are confined on our little knowledge of what an art is, who are the artists, and

where to find them most. We thought that what makes an art itself is if it was made by the popular artists being taught in the school, if it is framed and centered in the museum or gallery halls, or if it is being in a precise form representing the real scene. Some of  the schools here which offer art education are also bounding their students on what art should be based on the curriculum and for some professors, deans, administrators and students; art is a distinct and objective form of ideas. We are making the very sense of  art as a mainstream which makes its audiences a little jaded and the artists feeling so frustrated. Vinyl on Vinyl is the first of its kind to make urban and underground art have their  spotlight in the Philippine art scene. They aim to give a fresh way on how to represent art in its fullest by giving chances and opportunities for the underground and urban artists of our country. They help the young and rising artists to penetrate the lively art community by showcasing their talents and having those exposed with the international big artists. They tend to give hope to these artists which really have the potential, but lack of exposures.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Urban and underground art is slowly penetrating the art scene of our community here in the Philippines. However, most of our artists and art enthusiasts tend to stay in the mainstream of what art is for them. Their little exploration of other forms of art bound them to conventional way of being creative. Urban artists need more exposure in the art scene for them to fully show their potentials. Urban and vinyl art stores like Vinyl on Vinyl showcase the potentials of these artists which could be tied-up to big and international artists outside the country.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The goal of the team is to apply everything we learned in our program, BS Multimedia Arts and Science, by helping our chosen company, Vinyl on Vinyl, with their  promotional needs. 

Endorse the company‘s goods and services through print, website and Audio

Visual Presentation (AVP). 

Produce high quality print materials such as posters, brochures and catalogues.



Build a creative and dynamic website that will provide online information and

product details to customers 

Create AVP that will showcase the gallery and the products. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study will help Vinyl on Vinyl in promoting their gallery and products in a larger  market. Since the gallery and their advocacy are still new in the community, such promotional materials will aid them to reach more customers. Also, by reaching out with these efforts, more artists will be encouraged to showcase their crafts and be exposed in the local and international art scenes.

SCOPE AND DELIMITATION

This study was delimited to the preparation and production of promotional materials for Vinyl on Vinyl Gallery aimed at endorsement of the gallery itself and its products and services. These campaign materials will include website, AVP and print materials (posters, brochures, catalogues, etc.). Concepts on different materials will be based only to the advocacy that the gallery adheres. Furthermore, the study was confined to getting the attention of potential customers or buyers and artists that are willing to showcase their crafts at a different level.

LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

This study will focus mainly on the urban, underground art and vinyl culture that Vinyl on Vinyl brought here in the Philippines. Centering on that idea, the study will also feature the showcased artists of the gallery, designer and vinyl toys, art pieces (limited hand numbered prints, books and such) of different underground artists and the different collectibles and limited edition merchandises of the store. The researchers will only do advertising materials which designs and concepts are approved by the company owner. The researchers will be responsible in their act not to expose information and details that will give harm to the company. Also, the researchers will respect the limitations that will be set by the company as to what extent the advertising campaign will be.

METHODOLOGY

The study made use of the research about underground, urban art and vinyl culture from the different materials such as local sources, books, magazines, journals and e-books.

The researchers gathered information about the company profile by interviewing one of  the Vinyl on Vinyl owner, Mr. Carlo Reyes. They were informed about the history, mission and vision, product description, SWOT analysis, competitive and market analysis. The data were recorded using a phone recorder and jotted down in a notebook. Also, pictures of the different merchandises the store offers were taken.

The advertising materials that will be rendered to the company were chosen by the researchers and approved by the company owner. The designs and the concepts of the promotional campaign will be approved by the company owners. The promotional campaign will be made accordingly to what concept and design the company will be approving.

Concepts, ideas and studies for the designs to be used in the promotional campaign will be jotted daily in a journal. The researchers will also search for potential inspirations for  the creative outputs. Consistent studies for all the campaign materials will be made as a guide for the researchers to follow from the start up to the end of the project.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Urban art  – a term refers to a wide variety of art forms that are grouped together 

because they are created in city areas, depict city life, or make a statement

about urban issues. It began as graffiti, which was the spray-painting of the sides of  buildings, bridges, and other structures and was considered by many to be vandalism. Underground art - is a term that seeks to describe art forms that are aloof to the

mainstream art world, are illegal, taboo, unconventional, rebellious or  revolutionary. Underground art usually challenges or rejects the cultural status quo in some way, and may involve extreme doses of originality and experimentation in terms of its content, form or context. Vinyl - compound (formula −CH=CH2), is any organic compound that contains a vinyl

group which are derivatives of  ethene, CH2=CH2, with one hydrogen atom replaced with some other group. An industrially important example is vinyl chloride, precursor to PVC, a plastic commonly known as "vinyl". Urban Vinyl culture - is a trend first introduced in Hong Kong in the late 1990s by

Michael Lau. Urban vinyl toys - is a type of designer toy, featuring action figures in particular which

are usually made of vinyl which feature original designs, small production numbers, and are marketed to collectors, predominantly adults. Designer toys - is a term used to describe toys and other collectibles that are made of 

a variety of materials; ABS plastic and vinyl are most common, although wood, metal, and resin that are produced in limited editions (as few as 10 or as many as 2000 pieces) and created by artists and designers. Artists prints - involves one or more of the classic printmaking techniques like

lithography (stone or plate), intaglio processes (i.e. etching, aquatint, engraving, Mezzotint, collagraph, drypoint), relief printing like lino- and woodcut, screen-printing and mono-print, digital manipulation (e.g. indigo printing, iris-prints & Durst Lamda Prints in which the artist cuts, draws, engraves or otherwise creates the image with an intention of not to reproduce an original work but to create a new one.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

A.

LOCAL SOURCES

Pinoy Artist in the Urban Art Scene

In an article titled, "Pinoy Street Art comes to London," written in www.balitapinoy.net, BEN NAZ known as Ben Riviere-Nazareno (Street Artists, Figurative Painter) has been active in creating Filipino Modern Arts since the late 90s. He was born in France and spent most of his artistic career in Manila, Philippines until he left the beloved homeland and returned to Paris to seek himself as a stranger on his own country. He began exposing his works starting from figurative to classical nude drawings in which it has brought him inside the circle of one of the most respected artists on his era artist on his era. Nevertheless known to others, Ben has been actively involved in creating substantial amount of well politically motivated works in which he renders into a more avant- garde urban art style of expression, creating significant post graffiti art on the street of Manila in the early 90s. His works continued to evolve into a more modern approach of combining old school graffiti style artworks and the more sophisticated world of mixed media and graphics. Ben has been working as an illustrator and an art director on a daily basis and was heavily involved in making art scene at night with other artists on the busy streets of  Manila up to urban sites of Laguna. Urban Movement had captured his soul to make more of his surroundings as his own canvas, until he was discovered and later on was commissioned to create figurative drawings and this was the start of his career in establishing a name for the modern Filipino Art. Painting Nude and Figurative became his ideal works to many, but many of those who knew his influence in the Modern Filipino Art, he was still active in performing urban art into canvas, but not on the walls anymore. This is due to his past involvement that led him to lie low from the movement.

Manila's Finest how they branded the artist, his influences brought attention to the outside world, and was easily accepted by the string of political, real life dramatic scenes, heart breaking stencil artworks that depicts a struggle between the rich and the

poor, deep rooted images that critics were to call this as an absorbed type of art to name a few. It is an experience to have on board, another captivating beauty of urban art from the heart of South East Asia. A story about an artist that has never been told, but he has brought awareness and realization to the existing urban movement in the Philippines. His works on nude and figurative paintings can still be seen around Europe and  America. He is still currently active in producing new figurative artworks.

B.

BOOKS

Underground Art

Robert Williams in his book Pop Surrealism: The Rise of Underground Art said: "I belong to a rather loose-knit group of artists that because of a fifty-year dominance of  abstract and conceptual are have been left isolated from the more conventional academic mainstream. All of us, with few exceptions, function in the craftsmanshipbased realm of representational art. We spawn from story illustration, comic book art, science fiction, movie poster art, motion picture production and effects, animation, music art and posters, psychedelic and punk rock art, hot rod and biker art, surfer, beach bum and skateboard graphics, graffiti art, tattoo art, pin-up art, pornography and myriad other commonplace egalitarian art forms. And all are simply dismissed and treated with condescension by the formal art authorities." ( R. Williams, K. Anderson and C. McCormick. September 28, 2004. Pop Surrealism: The Rise of Underground Art . Last Gasp, San Francisco )

Character Design

In the book, Animated Spirit, Lisa Hassel, creative director of illustration collective Inkygoodness, says: "What may have once seemed whimsical or childish is now penetrating the mainstream, with studios such as passion Pictures and Studio AKA creating campaigns for Compare the Market and Lloyds TSB, with characters tailored to the adult market." Peter Thaler, the founder of Berlin-based character design festival Pictoplasma, attributes the past decade's boom in characters to the birth of the Internet. Unable to support pixel-rich photography, the early Web used avatars to depict nonlanguage-specific expression. Says Thaler, "Initial characters were cute and smiley. There was this utopian belief that you could communicate globally and now there was a technological way to do it." By 2004, when Thaler co-found Pictoplasma with Lars Denicke, character design's initial optimism had been marred by the burst of  the dotcom bubble, resulting in a rebellion of darker, mutated figures. "It was the pubertal age of character design," says Thaler. But what began online has now firmly rooted itself in the offline word. The growing popularity of designer toys, whether vinyl, paper or one- off objets d‘art, is leading to character designers earning large-scale, physical commissions. For instance, game designer and Pictoplasma speaker Keita Takahashi is creating a children‘s playground in Nottingham inspired by his video games, for gaming festival Game City. Hassell says, ―Many character designers now describe themselves as multi -disciplined, crossing over between animation, illustration and set design.‖ But the nature of characters continues to follow the mood of the public psyche. Over the past few years, Thaler has spotted increasingly spiritual character worlds. ―Lots of  characters are seen exhaling their souls, with crosses in their eyes, or deeply involved in rituals. Perhaps it‘s a response to us having been at war again, especially as it‘s been a war that‘s been communicated with religious overtones,‖ says Thaler. ( L.Snoad. 2003. Animated Spirit . )

C.

Magazines, Newspaper, Periodicals

Urban Art

 According to Eric S. Caruncho, on his article titled ―Urban Art Rears its pointy Head in Manila‖ in Philippine Daily inquirer; Urban art is a movement that has coalesced from various streams of contemporary expression that include graffiti, comics, tattoos, urban sports like skateboarding, poster illustration and designer toys. While mainstream art is still hung up on the mythos of the solo auteur as cultural avatar  expressing universal truths for the ages, urban art embraces the ephemeral nature of  modern life, where art is just another commodity to be desired, purchased, consumed and eventually discarded, or hoarded, as the case may be. In Manila, urban art aficionados have created their own alternative network to the thriving gallery circuit, in the form of exhibition spaces/stores such as the aforementioned Secret Fresh, Vinyl on Vinyl in Makati and White Box in Cubao X. In its own way, urban art could be just as subversive as, say, Mideo Cr  uz‘s ―Poleteismo,‖ since it stretches notions of art beyond the average person‘s comfort zone.

( Eric S. Caruncho. Urban Art Rears its Pointy Head in Manila . Philippine Daily Inquirer. September 17, 2011 )

On an interview of Sunday inquirer Magazine (SIM), CCP 13 Artists awardee Lena Cobangbang stated that, ―Urban art seems to be the catch -all phrase to include street art and graffiti, bombing, vinyl toy collecting and customizing. It‘s mostly an offshoot of  hip-hop, or the vernacular art of urban youth cultures which also includes turntablism, car customizing, urban spelunking.

I don‘t know if skateboarding should also be

included here as its origins were essentially urban, as a direct dialogue with architecture and the city. I think it‘s more rooted in ―lowbrow‖ culture, which locally comes mostly from flipping through Juxtapoz and Giant Robot, two magazines that are like the Art Forum and Frieze magazine of this style stream without the heavy handedness of theory….and a

bit of Adbuster for those who have a more radical and/or political bent in their  method/motivations. Most in the urban art scene are self-taught artists or were undergrads (drop-outs), or  had stints at graphic design, web design, advertising, etc. I guess this is partly due to the DIY ethos that came from Punk and which actually characterized the distribution and dissemination of any subcultures‘ distinct mode of identity. Urban art is distinct from pop art (from the art historical viewpoint) in that pop art celebrated consumerism, the machine-made, mining pop culture or consumerist culture for its cheeky diatribe against the mass hysteria of consumerism itself but which the art industry is also part of, stripping it of the aura of ―transcendent enlightenment‖ which is its very investment in the culture capital of art.‖ ―It was predicted in some foreign online art publication that it may soon fizzle out if the market for such also fizzles out as with pop art before. But foreign art markets are so vulnerable to stock market crashes, and s ince the Philippines isn‘t as vulnerable, it still is enjoying its time now it its infancy. Actually, compared to the larger international art market, it‘s still thriving.‖ Lena added.

Urban Artists

Constantino Tejero ―Jaime Zobel‘s and Igan D‘Bayan‘s apposite takes on urban art‖ said ―the joint exhibit of photographer Jaime Zobel and painter Igan D‘Bayan, recently at the lobby gallery of Ayala Museum in Makati City, is a study in counterpoise. It has been said that the two artists are art worlds apart —Zobel with his neat images and D‘Bayan with his horrid visages; the former an ode to joy, the latter a dirge of doom. That visual tension of form and deformation, which respectively conform to our  conventional notions of beauty and ugliness, has been carried over to this exhibit, eponymously titled ―Zobel-D‘Bayan.‖  As Zobel himself remarked at the show‘s opening: ―Indeed, this exhibit is about contrasts—contrasts which exist in our societies, in our beings and our lives.‖

Here the two artists appear to have been joined only by a tenuous connection: Both drew inspirations from spray-painted graffiti and murals by anonymous artists, and both found their subjects in Spain. Zobel is known for his distinctively lit portraiture and imagery of ordinary objects magnified into abstracted forms and patterns. So it‘s a jolt when here the viewer comes face to face with something radically new in his art-making.

(Constantino Tejero . Jaime Zobel’s and Igan D’Bayan’s Apposite Takes on Urban Art‖. The Philippine Daily Inquirer. November 20, 2011)

Designer Toys

Steven Heller in his ―Toy Story‖ in The New York Times said, ―The (variously) one -eyed, one-horned, purple, red and green people eaters called Uglydolls are among the most successful of a new wave of v inyl, plastic and plush ―designer toys.‖ Originally conceived by the New York design school graduates David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim, the Uglydoll line has grown into a monstrous franchise with dozens of iterations, collected (ostensibly for their kids) by baby boomers, like me, who have yet to fully embrace maturity. Uglydolls are, however, but one brand among scores — if not hundreds — of patently quirky and deliberately unsightly toy/object characters that have exploded into a minor global phenomenon. Starting in Hong Kong and Japan during the mid-1990s, when comic illustrators fiendishly began tearing off and substituting heads and appendages on G.I. Joes, Barbies and other mainstream dolls and toys with mangled (and melted) body parts, these hybrids were sold at comic-book conventions, where people went wild for them. Soon toy factories in Guangdong Province in China were commissioned to produce limited editions of around 250 each, and the ―designer toy movement‖ erupted. In ―I Am Plastic: The Designer Toy Explosion,‖ Paul Budnitz, founder of Kidrobot, one of  the most prodigious retailers of designer toys in the United States, and co-creator of the

Dunny doll (a balloonlike head with rounded ears atop a stumpy teddy-bear body, produced in various customized versions), showcases many of the more adventurous toy designers and their wares. While much too short on descriptive text — it could also have benefited from more historical analysis — this large, sumptuous display of alluring oddities shows the extent to which independent artists and designers have aggressively and satirically pushed the limits of convention beyond the benign world brought to life in the animated film ―Toy Story.‖  Although designer toys emerged on the pop culture scene with a kind of D.I.Y. underground cred, most are intricately and professionally produced, with well-articulated parts and accessories. Le Messie‘s Zombies — a series of brightly colored creatures with sardonic expressions, whose bodies resemble large gel caps with arms, legs and removable heads that cover their deformed brains — are typical of an obsessive attention to detail. In fact, designer toys are also more sculptural than their mainstream counterparts. Even the cardboard and bubble-wrapped packages (sadly, not reproduced in the book) are graphically alluring. ―What draws a person to an object is not always an idea — it might just be an intense love for the material reality of the object itself,‖ Budnitz writes. ( Steven Heller . Toy Story. The New York Times. January 28, 2007 )

'Designer toys' or 'urban vinyl' offer themselves as a fascinating site of resistance to the contemporary circulation of images and things. This article provides an introduction to the field of designer toys and argues that the field may be understood to be a materially situated critique of the commercial practice of character merchandising. Beginning with a description of the logic of character merchandising, this article goes on to demonstrate how designer toys critically and creatively transform some of the fundamental tenets of  this practice, advancing a critique of character merchandising via the material objects themselves. In this age of image circulation, the case of the designer toy demonstrates how material artefacts can themselves become significant sites of critique.

( Marc Steinberg . A Vinyl Platform for Dissent: Designer Toys and Character  Merchandising. Journal of Visual Culture. August 2010, Vol. 9 Issue 2, p209-228, 20p.

)

Urban Art Community The Collective

Located on 7274 Malugay St. in San Antonio Village, The Collective occupies what used to be an auto accessories hub. Like the Cubao Shoe Expo before the advent of  Cubao-X, the place had been dead, business-wise, for a long time. But the emergence of The Collective seems to have injected a much-needed shot of adrenaline (and capital) into the area. Indeed, experiments like Cubao-X and The Collective present one model for what many urban planners have been advocating for a long while now repurposing existing urban spaces for a more livable city. Start with reasonable rent, essential for first-time entrepreneurs who are short on capital but big on ideas.  A little promotion goes a long way, and regular events can‘t hurt. Recently, cult poster  princess Tara McPherson put in an in-store appearance at Vinyl on Vinyl, an urban art gallery, designer toy and record store owned by makeup artist Pia Reyes and race car  driver/model Gaby de la Merced. It pulled in fans from all over the metro and beyond, helping put The Collective on the happening map. In keeping with the place‘s laid -back vibe, hours seem to be flexible. Most of the stores have set hours, but things at The Collective seldom get going until mid-afternoon. But depending on whether there‘s an event or who‘s playing at the B -Side, stores may stay open until after midnight. The Collective is a melting pot for everyone who enjoys art, says Carlo Reyes, curator  for Vinyl on Vinyl. What‘s nice about it is that we help each other outAll comers are regarded as equals. The president of a company can come in and talk about his hobbies with a regular guy. It‘s definitely a community of people, says Santiago. Just one store wouldn‘t be successful, but combine 24 units into one big thing and I think it‘s going to be successful.

( Eric S. Caruncho. Collective Consciousness . Philippine Daily Inquirer )

D.

Internet and Electronic Data Sources

Urban Art

Urban art (from Latin urbanus, itself from urbs (―city‖)) is a style of art that relates to cities and city life often done by artists who live in or have a passion for city life. In that way urban art combines street art and graffiti and is often used to summarize all visual art forms arising in urban areas, being inspired by urban architecture or thematizing urban life style.

Because the urban arts are characterized by existing in the public space, they are often viewed as vandalism and destruction of private property. Even though sometimes this form of art leads to vandalism the creators do not see themselves as vandals.

 Although urban art started at the neighbourhood level, where a lot of people of different cultures live together, it is an international art form with an unlimited number of uses nowadays. A lot urban artists are travelling from city to city and have social contacts all over the world.

The notion of 'Urban Art' developed from street art which is primarily concerned with graffiti culture. Urban art represents a broader cross section of artists that as well as covering traditional street artists working in formal gallery spaces also covers artists using more traditional media but with a subject matter that deals with contemporary urban culture and political issues. The most noted gallery in the UK that deals with Urban art is Lazarides Gallery. In Paris, Le Mur is a public museum of urban art. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_art)

Urban Vinyl Culture

Here's a movement under foot. It's a blend of art and toys and it's struck a chord with toy collectors and art lovers alike. It's Urban Vinyl and this is a brief history for those who'd like to learn a little more about this art movement in the making.

First, to understand Urban Vinyl, one must throw aside their conventional ideas of what makes a great toy. Sure, design of the piece plays a big part in the making of both. But the big difference is that Urban Vinyl is original from the start. This is true art, not a replication of another form. For example, more than likely, you base how much you like your Gonzo action figure on how much it looks like the actual Gonzo. In order to appreciate Urban Vinyl you enjoy it for what it is. There are no preconceived notions because what the piece is; is all it is, man. Also, things like articulation aren't as important because the Vinyl isn't always made to be played with. Yes, I know you play with your Skeletor. We all do. [Ed note: Shake it more than twice and you're playing with it.] But Urban Vinyl is created with art sensibilities in mind, so sculpt and design are the most important ingredients. Now I'm not saying that people like the Four Horsemen aren't amazing craftsmen. They are. But what they are doing is giving us their take on an already designed character. This is original to a point, but Urban Vinyl is original all the way to its core.

So how did the plastic move from the pegs to the pedestals? It all started in Hong Kong with a man named Michael Lau. It was the late nineties and Lau was showing paintings in galleries and working in advertising. He was employed by a music group named  Anidoze to create the cover art for an upcoming album. Instead of a 2-D design he created an original action figure and photographed it. He had been making original figures for a while for friends and family, and decided to create one for the cover, showing a broader audience his style. It received a very warm response and led to the first official Urban Vinyl line, The Gardeners. These were 12 inch vinyl figures that represented a modern positive lifestyle. No violence or drugs, but tattooed, pierced, and wearing clothes that the urbanites were wearing at the time. They struck a very strong chord with everyone who saw them in the local galleries were they were shown. This marriage of toy and art was beautiful in so many ways. The toy collector could

appreciate it because now something they love had been raised to a new level, thereby gaining more respect; while the art lovers could dig the new medium on many levels [representations of our plastic throw away society, people just being molds, and graffiti coming to life to name a few] Lau also created 6 inch figures that were sold to patrons of  the galleries. These 6 inch figures were made in very limited number and have been known to reach thousands of dollars in price in some auctions. Since then he's created numerous pieces and is still going at it like a true pro. But the public craved more than  just one man could create, but let's face it; this is a great idea that can be expanded on in so many directions. So more artists began creating their own Urban Vinyl based on what was important to them. (http://www.millionaireplayboy.com/toys/urbanvinyl.php)

Urban Vinyl toy stores - Vinyl on Vinyl

Barely two years in the art scene, Vinyl on Vinyl Art and Music Gallery become home to some of today‘s up-and-coming urban artists, showcasing edgy and modern vinyl art. Way back in the early 30s, record companies have already recognized the art value of vinyl records and their packaging as they sought to create artful and visually appealing covers to attract consumers. Today, vinyl art transcends this medium to encompass vinyl designer action figures and other art forms.  Among the popular designer toy lines offered at Vinyl on Vinyl are those from Kidrobot, one of which is designed by Frank Kizik, the artist behind the graphics on the music posters of popular bands as Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Urban art and vinyl art is considered to be an off shoot of youth popular culture with designs and renditions done by illustrators, graffiti artists, and musicians from urban areas. Such art is popular in Japan and Hong Kong and even in the United States and Europe. At Vinyl on Vinyl, local urban artists get their share of the limelight to push through the local art scene. Two shows are upcoming at the Vinyl on Vinyl Art and Music Gallery: Tutok ng Tumpok and Eleven Elva

Rare designer vinyl toys and art prints could be found at Vinyl on Vinyl as well as an interesting mix of apparel designed with art prints. From time to time, the gallery holds doodle nights and music festivals to complement their urban art offerings  – some artists even give out their signed doodles to gallery visitors on doodle nights. Vinyl on Vinyl Art and Music Gallery is located in The Collective at 7274 Malugay Street, Makati City.

(http://www.noypi.ph/index.php/featured/5030-vinyl-on-vinyl-art-gallery-making-spacefor-edgy-urban-art.html)

CHAPTER III

SITUATION ANALYSIS

A.

COMPANY BACKGROUND

1.

History

Vinyl on vinyl is an art, music and toy gallery dedicated to featuring culture of  underground art or urban art and modern-day pop artists influenced by illustration, poster art, graffiti, street art, comic books, pop surrealism and graphic design. Founded on February 8, 2010, Vinyl on Vinyl is the 1st in the Philippines to introduce vinyl toys and artworks. It is founded by JJ Cocjin, Pia Reyes, Gaby Dela Merced and Carlo Reyes. Merging the three things they are passionate about: music, vinyl toys and urban art, they brought here vinyl culture

merchandises which vary from zipper pulls, key

chains, stickers, toys down to apparels such as t-shirts, shoes, watches, bags and vinyl records. Believing that the culture of the vinyl industry is underground and against the grain, the founders decided to put up the gallery in the Collective in Maluggay st. Makati, which serves as a portal for local and international artists in the art community for them to transcend. The uniqueness of the shop lies in selecting artists who explore various contemporary-cultural interests and immediate experiences through visual language and techniques of commercial art and fine art alike. The gallery space reflects the lifestyle and passion of its artists. Providing a haven where artists can explore and

experiment their craft amidst the conformities of the norm. They give the artists a venue in which to showcase their works in the context of the art world.

2.

Mission/Vision

The goal of Vinyl on Vinyl is to bring the underground culture here in the Philippines, to promote local artists by being a portal to both local and international artists and those interested in the art community. It aims to showcase the talents of Filipino artists by giving those exposures and guiding them into the lime line, providing these inspirations by inviting famous and rising international artists to exhibit here. The Vinyl on vinyl looks forward to the local art scene adaptation of the urban and underground art which will create a spotlight for our talented and skillful local artists. This will give them a variety to their art, lifestyle and culture that will release them from the confinement of the norm.

B.

PRODUCT PROFILE

1.

Description

If the designer is a good artist he will not, however, content himself with existing materials and conventions. He will try to change things or at least explore the possibilities for changes (de Lucio Meyer, 1973). The Vinyl on Vinyl brought another playful idea to release us from the conventional merchandises. They introduced the vinyl toys especially the designer toys which price ranges from 300 to 5, 000 pesos. These toy brands include Kidrobot, Dunny,

CoarseHKG,

Crazychildren,

Kozik,

Carrotbombing,

Mindstyle,

SpankyStokes,

The Scupley Man, Toyqube, Toys R Evil, Vinyl Pulse and Zero Friends. These toys are so expensive because they are produced in a limited edition globally. So, if you are holding right now a vinyl toy, you are just so lucky because perhaps it is one of 50, or  100 and so, around the globe. VoV does not only sell toy collectibles, they also sell local and international prints. These prints really cost a lot because they are not reproduction of the original work, but a newly produced one by the use of some special techniques. VoV is also an art gallery which exposes local and international artists in the community. Some of the international artists they had already invited were Tara McPherson, Angry Woebots,  Arkiv Vilmansa and Audrey Kawasaki. VoV also offers books made by the artists and distributed by Fully Booked. VoV is also a place for vinyl records aside from being a toy store and art gallery. There is a certain spot in the store where you can actually sit and relax while playing your  favorite music in the gramophone. Currently, VoV is having a renovation in the vinyl records area because they are planning to put up a coffee shop inside the store so it will be cozier, and the store will be more likely to be a hangout for everyone to enjoy art, music and toys.

2.

SWOT

Strengths

The store serves as a portal for local and foreign artists and those who have a passion and interests in the culture and art community. It is open to all and does not alienate

people, instead, they encourage them to participate and be part of the community, no matter what age, gender, class or type. The management makes sure that all people that will enter their store will be given attention and an insight of what the culture has and be treated fairly. The store creates an atmosphere of a good ambiance in which people, whether an artist or not, would appreciate the beauty of the underground and popular art alike. It also serves as a comfort zone for the local artists, where the store gives them hope and enthusiastically encourages and guides them forward to exposure and reality of their dreams. The gallery also has an intensive collection of underground art compare to other galleries and art shops which usually have mixed collection.

Weaknesses

However, because the store is new, two years in age, it is not too big and is selfmaintained business. Also, the price range of the products is too costly for an ordinary people to buy. The products or the collectibles are also addictive to some that made them as added liabilities.

Because it is not too big and is self-maintained, there is no security that keeps the store away from theft. And because the gallery contains expensive artworks and toy collectibles, it is not safe from harmful and unexpected elements from the outside.

Opportunities

The good thing about Vinyl on vinyl, they treat their weaknesses and threats as an opportunity for their business to penetrate the market. Because of being small compare to other art shops and galleries, it attracts underground artists which serve as their goal.

People are starting to get the idea of what really the underground art is, and because of  this, they gradually are becoming popular. They currently are extending their store to provide an area for a coffee shop so people that would come could have a hang out place while enjoying the artistic atmosphere of the venue.

Threats

They actually don‘t treat their competitors as threats, and since there are few who offers the merchandises they sell here in the Philippines, they do not worry that much.

C.

MARKET PROFILE/ANALYSIS

VoV ‗s target market are kids, teens and adults of all ages, male or female. Mostly of  those are art aficionados, collectors and some exploring by passers. Its market is composed of art enthusiasts, urban artists, art fanatics and vinyl culture lovers.

D.

COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS

VoV is an art gallery/store that focuses on retail and showcasing of pop art, pop surrealism, urban and underground art. They are the first to introduce the vinyl culture (vinyl and designer toys) here in the Philippines.

One of the VoV‘s competitors is: Secret Fresh

It is a premiere vinyl toy shop in the Philippines. It is formerly known as Fresh Manila. It is owned by Big Boy Cheng, Secret Fresh is the haven for fans of designer toys. They also sell framed prints, shirts and other merchandise from well-known artists across the world. It is located at the RonacArt Center in Ortigas Ave, and in DOMANI in Makati.

CHAPTER IV CREATIVE PROCESS

I.

CREATIVE PROPOSAL

A.

Design Objectives

The designs that we used in the promotional materials adhere to the advocacy and culture of the gallery itself which is the urban and underground art. We made use of  color  – popping illustrations that easily attract viewers. These colors portray the playful image of designer toys. We also made use of doodles, graffiti and street art style of  illustrations that visually connect with the real urban art. By coming up with these illustrations at hand, we are already promoting the uniqueness of the Vinyl on Vinyl from other typical galleries. The designs aid the gallery to establish more a strong identity to the prospect clients by having a consistent concept and right ambiance to what really

they are imposing. These designs are purposely created to instill a brand image in the minds of its market.

B.

Design Strategies

In order to serve their purposes, we made designs that are more creative and far from the normal norms. Because the gallery itself is playful and unique, we made use of  elements that are also playful and catchy. We use color-popping designs and images that can easily capture one‘s attention. We use modern design and layout especially in our website. We also ensure that our campaign materials are not just for display. We thought of other  ways to make the most out of our designs. Instead of just a plain catalogue and brochure, they served also as a freedom notes or sketchpad, where the customers could draw and sketch their ideas. In this way, we prevent waste of money. We are always keeping in mind that the gallery is all about art, toys and music that adhere to the urban and underground art culture. All our works are mirror images of what the gallery is all about. It is playful, trendy, easily to remember, does not alienate people, and aloof of the mainstream.

C.

Marketing Objectives

The objective of the promotional materials for Vinyl on Vinyl is to endorse the gallery itself and introduce the different unique merchandises and services it offers to the market. It is also to introduce the urban and underground art culture which they

advocate. Along with the endorsement, it aims to increase the market and market sales of the Vinyl on Vinyl. It also aims to attract different artists to showcase their talents and crafts to be competitive locally and internationally.

D.

Marketing Strategies

In order to do marketing well, we made use of promotional materials that are accessible by many like website, AVP, posters, catalogues and brochures. The gallery will make some of the marketing strategies itself by putting up an event that showcases different renowned artists local and internationally.

E.

Creative Objective

The design and the usability are the unique things in our creative materials. The purpose of these creative designs and layout is to help the customers to easily access information about the gallery, products and other services it offers. It is not only about designs, but also how usable the promotional materials will be.

F.

Creative Strategies

We use the right elements that will reflect the gallery itself such as doodles, cartoons, comic art, graffiti, street art and the urban scenes. We also use modern layouts especially in the website.

II.

CREATIVE BRIEF

III.

DOCUMENTATION

Design References/Inspirations a.

Web

B b.

Posters

Studies Web

Posters

Catalogue and Brochure

IV.

FINAL ARTWORK/DUMMY

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

R. Williams, K. Anderson and C. McCormick. September 28, 2004. Pop Surrealism: The Rise of Underground Art . Last Gasp, San Francisco

L.Snoad. 2003. Animated Spirit . W. Phoenix. August 18, 2006 . Plastic Culture: How Japanese Toys Conquered the World. Kodansha International, Japan.

Newspapers

Eric S. Caruncho. Urban Art Rears its Pointy Head in Manila . Philippine Daily Inquirer. September 17, 2011 Eric S. Caruncho. Collective Consciousness . Philippine Daily Inquirer  (Constantino Tejero . Jaime Zobel’s and Igan D’Bayan’s Apposite Takes on Urban Art‖. The Philippine Daily Inquirer. November 20, 2011)

Journals

Marc Steinberg . A Vinyl Platform for Dissent: Designer Toys and Character  Merchandising. Journal of Visual Culture. August 2010, Vol. 9 Issue 2, p209-228, 20p.

Steven Heller . Toy Story. The New York Times. January 28, 2007 Websites

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_art http://www.millionaireplayboy.com/toys/urbanvinyl.php